Innovation Internship program is initiated by Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC) to bring craftspeople and design students together to work on various crafts related to the Interior Architecture. Each internship works on collaborative model and DICRC collaborates with other Organisations to develop a holistic model for the internship. The main intention is to integrate tactile skills and inherited knowledge of craftspeople along with the design thinking skills of designer. The internship is open to all the undergraduate and postgraduate level students within and outside India related to the field of Design, Architecture and Art. The student/s works with the craftspeople on the specific craft-design project for the period of 4 weeks to 16 weeks. Each project in internship is developed collaboratively through discussions between the researchers at DICRC, representatives from partnering organisations, craftsperson and the student. The aim of the project is to bring new ideas and innovations in the field of craft with the support of design.

In both these programs the interns and fellows from various allied field to craft and design are selected or invited to work with craftspeople to develop a Craft-Design Product or a system through the Craft-Design Process. In order to make this process sustainable and develop linkages of the output to the market, the interns, fellows and craftspeople are supported by institutional representatives, facilitators, technicians, craft and design experts and entrepreneurs.

These programs are based on the idea of synergetic innovations and it is usually focused on a particular craft, community or material. These programs are conducted over a period of 4 weeks to 16 weeks (or more) and are open to design professionals, master craftsperson, scholars, researchers, entrepreneurs and students from the field of Craft, Design and Architecture. It is a unique opportunity for interns and fellows to work with specific craft and craftsperson over a longer period of time with hands-on explorations. Each internship and fellowship is planned systematically in reference to the specific need of the project and the people working on it.

In any of the project, new ideas in reference to the chosen crafts are discussed through various interactive sessions, brain storming process, informal discussions, craft demonstrations, market explorations, research, field work and very importantly hands-on experimentation and explorations. These are done at DICRC, CEPT University as well as at the craftsperson’s workshop depending on the project brief. The ideas and systems developed out of this Craft-Design Process are refined and developed using the skills and knowledge of the craftsperson. The tangible outputs are connected to the market with the help of individuals and organisations already established in the market.

The primary intention of the CIS is to bring and utilize design and design thinking to create new sets of innovation in crafts and craft practices. Designers and craftspeople work together to bring new values to both the fields – craft and design. Each project is thoroughly documented and the output is disseminated through various print and online medium.

Paashan Kalaa was an attempt to understand stone crafts with an added layer of Space-Making (Interior - Architecture). It is a compilation of all the research and explorations done in stone at DICRC.These explorations helped in arriving at an understanding about the innate craft-design processes, enriching the knowledge about stone, working in harmony with craftspersons, and above all in the realization that there is much more to crafts than simply being utilitarian products.

The internship project concluded with a design of a system which is based on Interlocking system and stands only on dry joints without use of metal or adhesive. It can be a simple, modular system which is composed from separate components and connected together and made with standard units and parts or customised according to the user’s requirement. The Design is based on the knock-down System in this system I want to explore the stone material and utilize the basic stone joints in system to understand the joinery strengthen structural stability.

This project was part of the Innovation Internship program of DICRC in partnership with CraftCanvas, Ahmedabad. It was a four-week project from 16th January to 31st April 2012 wherein the craft design process went through several stages of development like hands-on work, material exploration, design brief development and market surveys. The aim of this project was to bring together design innovation and traditional craft techniques. The final product represents a successful amalgamation of design, craft andTechnology Pashan Kala was a collaboration through the craft design process between a craft designer from IID Jaipur, Poorna Sharma and stone experts and craftspeople from Stone Technics, Ahmedabad.

The name ArKa has been derived by the team through the combination of two words- Artesania (Spanish word for crafts) and Kala (Indian word for crafts).Project ArKa is a modular multifunctional storage system developed with Wood Turning Lacquer Craft practiced in Dholka, Gujarat. It was a collaboration through the craft design process between an industrial designer from Mexico, Jimena and a crafts person, Anil from Dholka, Gujarat.

This project was part of the Innovation Internship program of DICRC in partnership with CraftCanvas, Ahmedabad. It was a four-week project from 1st to 30th July 2013 wherein the craft design process went through several stages of development like hands-on work, material exploration, design brief development and market surveys. The aim of this project was to bring together design innovation and traditional craft techniques. The final product represents a successful amalgamation of design, craft and technology.